The Royal Palace of Caserta is an extraordinary royal palace, with a large park attached, secret gardens, waterfalls and water features, located in Caserta, the capital of Campania located in central and southern Italy. It is the largest royal residence in the world by extension and the historical owners were the Bourbons of Naples, a powerful royal family who from 1442 for over 400 years were at the head of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which contained more than half the south of Italy and the islands including, a golden age, when Naples together with Paris and London were disputed to be the most powerful cities in Europe. The palace was designed by the famous architect Luigi Vanvitelli, under the insistent pressure of King Charles of Bourbon, who wanted to exceed in magnificence the palace of Versailles in France. The works began in 1752 and ended in 1774 with the continuation of Carlo Vanvitelli after the death of his father in 1773, completing a marvelous project that since 1997 has been declared by UNESC! visited by thousands of tourists every year.
The palace, defined as the last great achievement of the Italian Baroque, was completed in 1845 (although it was already inhabited in 1780), resulting in a grandiose complex of 1,200 rooms and 1,742 windows, for a total expenditure of 8,711,000 ducats. On the southern side, the palace is 249 meters long, 37.83 tall, decorated with twelve columns. The facade on the garden is the same as the main facade, but has windows framed by fluted pilasters.
The building covers an area of about 47,000 m²; It has 1,026 fumaroles and 34 scales. In addition to the rectangular perimeter building, the building has, within the rectangle, two buildings that intersect and form four vast internal courtyards of over 3,800 m² each.
Beyond the threshold of the main entrance to the palace opens a vast octagonal vestibule measuring 15.22 meters in diameter, adorned with twenty Doric columns. On the right and on the left there are the passages that lead to the internal courtyards, while on the front a triple portico leads to the topographical center of the palace.
After having walked the great main staircase, surmounted by two lions, you can visit the numerous rooms, which are richly bathed in gold and finely worked with skill. The rooms are not all open, also because it would take many hours to do so.
There are a lot of things that are unhinged for that era, which we consider normal today. for example, hot water pipes, bidets, elevators, and then collections of nativity scenes and vintage beauties, many paintings of the various successive Kings, in short, too many things to show them all here and to tell all of you. Now I introduce you to the beautiful park..
The Royal Park of Caserta stretches for 3 kilometers in length, developing south-north on 120 hectares. At the center of the rear façade of the palace two long parallel avenues branch off between which are interposed a series of evocative fountains that, starting from the northern edge of the Italian Garden, connect to this the English Garden:
the Margherita Fountain;
the Bath and Fountain of the Dolphins;
the Bath and Fountain of Eolo;
the Bath and Fontana di Cerere;
Cascatelle and Fountain of Venus and Adonis;
The fountain of Diana and Atteone, dominated by the Great Waterfall.
For those who do not want to walk the entire extension of the park, there are mini buses that travel the ride or horse-drawn carriages a little more expensive. The biggest garden is located at the end of the park on the right side, host plants and flowers from around the world, there are ponds and other games water in the most hidden corners, rose gardens and many other things to see. Isomma recommend you to visit this wonderful place, easily accessible by train or bus, always open except on Tuesday and December 25 and January 1, from 8:30 to 19:30, costs for the park and rooms of the building 12 euros, only for the apartments of the building 9 euros. And remember, the most beautiful places in Italy and to visit, are located in the provinces, or suburbs, as small treasures hidden and to be discovered. Greetings and have a good trip!